Post: More crime in 2010, and fewer cops

Early last Sunday morning, Bob Arihood captured a brutal brawl on Seventh Street and Avenue A that involved nearly 50 people. As noted at the time, one police car with two officers was available to respond to all this.

Today, the Post reports the following:

So far this calendar year, the number of New York City murders has jumped a scary 22 percent over the same period last year -- from 86 slayings up to 103 this year.

In addition to murders, the number of shootings has soared to 246 -- a 21.2 percent jump over the same period last year.

There are also more rapes, which are up 11.3 percent, and felony assaults, which have spiked nearly 6 percent. Burglaries have increased 3.6 percent.

Bloomberg noted that the total number of such crimes is "still very low" compared to the sky-high rates seen in years such as 1990, when murders hit an annual record of 2,245.

But he and others admit that the NYPD's shrinking manpower level -- from 41,000 cops in 2001 down to about 35,000 today -- could be playing a factor in the increased crime rates. The city expects to shed around 1,300 officers in the upcoming fiscal year through attrition, and also is threatening to lay off a whopping 3,150 cops if the state slashes related funding.

One top police official said, "There are just a lot less people out there . . .."

Feel free to make your own door prize joke

Spotted at 10th Street and Avenue A a little bit ago.

Avenue B, 10:41 a.m., March 27

Two Avenue A mainstays closed tonight

Mini Thai Cafe and Avenue A Sushi are closed tonight on Avenue A between Sixth Street and Seventh Street... What gives?

Kraut rocks

And Kraut reunites tomorrow at the Cake Shop.

Own a pet supply store on Avenue B

Zee's here on Avenue B near 10th Street is now for sale....$150,000 gets you the keys... Per the listing, that may have needed a proofreader:

EXCELLENT LOCATION, PET SUOOLIES BUSINESS FOR SALE, EST 5YRS, FULLY STOCKED, TURNKEY OPERATION, NEW OWNER WILL RECEIVE NEW 5YR LEASE, PET GROOMING AND DELIVERY SERVICE CAN BE ADDED TO INCREASE REVENUE

[Photo via Melanie]

Saves the dates April 19-22 for the next CB3/SLA meeting!

Hey, the next CB3/SLA licensing committee meeting agenda schedule thing has been posted.... Should be a humdinger! (and it's only Monday night, April 19 — just looks like a long meeting...)

Where to begin?!

The Superdive transfer is back on the docket!

The Belgian Ale House is back to tackle the "crazy landlord" corner at Second Avenue and Third Street!

This Little Piggy Had Roast Beef wants to serve beer to wash down that beef and Cheese Whiz!

Caffe Buon Gusto is back on the agenda for the 123rd time!

Something called Good Beer at 422 E. Ninth. St. (neighbors will love this one!) is applying for a liquor license!

The Meatball Shop (where males bond over meatballs!) on Stanton wants a sidewalk cafe!

And many mysteries...like: "Bklyn Local Draft LLC, 161 E Houston St (trans/op) (Oliva)... So Oliva is becoming something else???

So much more to come as we continue to read the agenda....

Help wanted: Consulting editor for The Local: East Village

As you may recall: NYTimes.com announced today a collaboration with New York University's Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute to create a new Local community news and information Web site covering the East Village in New York City. The Local East Village site will be developed by N.Y.U.'s journalism faculty and students and is scheduled to launch later this fall.

The Local: East Village (LEV) is looking for a consulting editor to assist in the planning and development phase leading up to the launch of the site in summer 2010, and carrying over to the first few months of operation.

The consulting editor will work directly with the editor of LEV. Responsibilities include:

* planning future coverage of local issues;
* recruiting potential contributors from the East Village community;
* producing high quality journalism from and about the East Village to run on the site in late summer and fall

This is not a full time position but a part-time paid consulting gig that would begin May 1 and end October 31. Requirements for the position and the criteria for evaluating candidates are:

— Journalism background: You have at least three years professional experience as a reporter, news blogger or editor for a news organization or site.

— Local knowledge: You live in the East Village and have lived there for a minimum of three years (East River to Broadway, 14th to Houston Streets.) You know the neighborhood intimately.

— Web literacy: You have a good command of web journalism and are comfortable with its forms and requirements.

— Independence from NYU: You are not an employee of NYU, or in a consulting role for any other division of the University.

If you are interested in the position and would like to know more about the duties, expectations and rate of pay, send a resume and cover letter to Rich Jones, Editor of The Local: East Village via email and cc Jay Rosen.

Said one East Village observer to EV Grieve: "It's like the White Man hiring an Indian guide to take them into the forests."

Previously on EV Grieve:
After helping ruin the East Village, NYU turns its attention to covering it

For further reading:
New blog on block as N.Y.U., Times team to get hyper (The Villager)

Om-M-G! Yoga instructor buys $1.2 million pad in the Christodora

Back in October, Curbed featured a recently renovated one-bedroom home in the Christodora House on Avenue B... $1.348 million was the asking price at the time. This unit at 4C was "gut renovated by Manifold Architecture Studio and published in 2008 as part of James Grayson Trulove's 25 book series," as Curbed noted. The price was reduced by 4 percent to $1,295 million on Oct. 31. It went into contract for the $1,295 million on Jan. 7.

Yesterday, BlockShopper featured the buyer:

Nisha Kewalramani, a yoga teacher with the Universal Force Healing Center in New York City. She earned her bachelor's in psychology from NYU and her yoga certification form The Ayurvedic Institute in Albuquerque, N.M.

And from the looks of this home, it should be enough to help achieve supreme awareness and enlightenment...

Seventh and A gets the dreaded shed

As Matt Rosen first reported at Neighborhoodr on March 11, facade repairs were scheduled to start soon on the building at Seventh Street and Avenue A... and that scaffolding is now up....



As he noted, "While an aesthetic improvement to the exterior of one’s building might be welcome on most occasions, that the storefronts will now have to deal with scaffolding obstructing their entryways in the prime summer months in an already difficult environment for businesses in the area means they’re none too thrilled about the timing."





Well, people should be able to dine on the sidewalk at Yuca during a rainstorm now...



If anything, I imagine the scaffolding will also provide for some interesting photos in the months ahead by fellow bloggers Bob Arihood, Slum Goddess and Melanie ...

A falling Falafel Star

I recently noticed a "closed for vacation until March 18" sign on what was Mohammed Falafel Star on Seventh Street near Avenue B... Next time that I looked, the place was closed... with work permits dated March 23 in the window...



...and this sign...



Does anyone know what happened to Mohammed? (Pictured here in a photo by Michael R.) I lost track of what was happening here...

Nevada Smith's back open

As we noted last night, Nevada Smith's on Third Avenue was shut down by the cops yesterday... Tonight, though, they are back open...



...otherwise, Bar None up the next block is ready to nab any soccer business away from Nevada Smith's...



Previously on EV Grieve:
Nevada Smith's shuttered

Guess the streetscape

The Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation posted this photo to their Flickr account yesterday... and they ask, Where in the Village was this streetscape?



See a larger image here.

Life above Cabin Down Below

Last November, the Pizza Shop, which was next to Niagara on Avenue A and Seventh Street, closed due to high rents. Thereafter, people going to Cabin Down Below, the not-so-secret speakeasy accessed through the Pizza Shop, had to enter instead on East Seventh Street, descend the metal staircase in the alley and walk through the smoking patio into the bar. If you're new to all this, Cabin Down Below is big with the bold-faced name set (Drew Barrymore!) and has become a post-Standard Hotel destination...



Which brings us to our current story. This switch in entrances has made one East Village family's life miserable. The resident, who asked to remain anonymous, told me his story... on how he has lived in this location for 13-plus years with his wife...and hasn't really slept the last four of those months.

"We love our neighborhood. We love the park ... the restaurants ... our bodegas ... and all of the other things that we enjoy ... It is our home.

"But we have encountered a problem that has seriously affected our happiness and enjoyment of living where we do. It is a place called Cabin Down Below. We haven’t had a good night’s sleep in months.



"We live directly to the east of Niagara ... our bedroom/bathroom wall is adjacent to the 'secret' stairs that lead to Cabin Down Below. This steel egress stairs are bolted directly to our building's wall. Basically, our headboard (and my kid's bed) is directly opposite this stair. So from 11:30 p.m. until 5 a.m. (and even 6:30 a.m. on Saturdays) all that we hear every 30 seconds are people trudging up and down these stairs. Imagine high heels drunkenly plodding up and down these stairs, about 6 to 8 inches away from your head. Trust me -- turning on our two white noise makers, our fans, our AC ... ear plugs, iPods... NOTHING can drown out the sound of footsteps on steel stairs."

"We can't sleep at night. Simple as that."



"And Niagara/Cabin Down Below didn’t use these stairs (except on rare occasions) until the Pizza Shop closed. After 13 years, we have grown accustomed to the live bands, people yelling outside our windows, cigarette smoke pouring in our windows. We used to go out and make noise too, so we have shrugged all that off.

"But these stairs? It's a nightmare."

The resident has done the usual things in these situations...call 311, call the bar to complain, etc. Nothing has worked to date.

"If the owner would simply re-open the Avenue A 'secret' entrance to the Cabin, that would solve our problems. I don't want to kill their business. I am all for people having a good time. Smoke, drink, hook up -- do what you want. But when it keeps up me, my wife and my kid every night of the week, that is where I draw the line.

"We don't want to move to the suburbs. We want to raise our kid [in this neighborhood].

Since our initial exchange, the resident heard back from an owner of Niagara.

"I hope I wasn't being naive, but she sounded very concerned about the situation and promised to do something about it 'very soon.' ... she plans to replace the current steel stair treads with concrete treads. The stairs will be still be rigidly connected to our building's wall, but it should help. And if it doesn't....then we will go from there. In the meantime ... we will suffer until she makes the fix..."

Today is the 99th anniversary of the Triangle Factory Fire

Last March 25, we wrote a post on the 98th anniversary of the Triangle Factory fire, which claimed nearly 150 lives... Once again this year, volunteers have taken the time to walk around the neighborhood and honor the factory workers, most of whom were young immigrant women. Here's an NPR report from 2003 on the fire.

A reader also noted a service this evening in honor of the anniversary. Marc Ribot will be among the performers.

6:30 - 8:30 pm
Judson Memorial Church
55 Washington Square South
(corner of Thompson Street)
Free

Here's the Web site with more information.

Panty raid

From the Police Blotter in this week's issue of The Villager:

The manager of Victoria’s Secret, 591 Broadway between Prince and Houston Sts., told police that a group of two men and three women entered the place at 5:20 p.m. Mon., March 15, distracted the security guard, and managed to take 96 panty thongs from a shelf, hide them in a big yellow bag and walk out without paying. The total value lost was $4,680, the store reported.

Nevada Smith's shuttered

Uh-oh...the soccer (football, sorry!) mecca on Third Avenue was shuttered by the cops today...Thanks to EV Grieve reader TK for the photo and tip... According to their Twitter account:

Bar will be closed today due to circumstances beyond our control. We apologise

Reports: Union Square's W Hotel filing for bankruptcy

Per Portfolio:

The W Hotel Union Square, housed in an elegant old building on Park Avenue South at the northern edge of lower Manhattan, is populated with an assortment of models, actors, and other big spending types in advertising, finance, etc., etc., etc. The number of $21 cocktails flowing through the bar must be waning, because business is way down and the new owners are filing for bankruptcy protection.

Crain's first reported on the story.

Update: My apologies... The Real Deal had the piece first -- last night, in fact. You can read their article here.

[Image via]

A summer rental on East 12th Street

If you're looking for a summer getaway, then consider this furnished townhouse at 215 E. 12th. St.



According to the listing:

Stately 1850's four-story mansion width (25') townhouse with oversized garden on tree lined street, available fully furnished. This 5,000 square foot home on a beautiful tree lined street is in the heart of the East Village, and offers incredibly high ceilings and grand proportions.

The private gated street level entrance leads to the foyer and an ornate staircase that winds up the four floors, capped by a beautiful skylight.

The dramatic parlour floor features intricate moldings and woodwork, wood herringbone floors, 14 foot ceilings and two working wood burning fireplaces. Huge oversize windows flood the "ballroom" with southern light. The state of the art eat-in windowed kitchen has marble floors, pressed tin ceilings, a professional six burner gas range and Sub-Zero refrigerator.

The third floor is equally dramatic with 12 foot ceilings. The master bedroom with separate dressing area , office and en-suite bath is bathed in light from 3 south facing windows. A children's room with loft has garden views, and there is an art studio with two exposures.

It's all yours from June 15 to Aug. 16. The price: $25,000 per month. Better hurry! The price increased $5k two weeks ago...

Update: Thanks to EV Grieve reader C. Bee in the comments... she remembered that the home was featured in the Times in 2008.... according to the article, Pamela Bell, one of the four original partners in the Kate Spade brand, lives here with her family....

The Charlie Parker Residence getting jazzed up

Heh, heh -- oh, forgive me for that headline...

Anyway, over on Avenue B near 10th Street, workers yesterday began chipping away at the exterior of the onetime residence of Charlie Parker... Not quite sure exactly of the extent of the work just yet...





Have no fear, though... nothing tacky will happen here... As I borrowed from the Web site: The Charlie Parker Residence was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in l994 by the U.S. Department of the Interior. In l999 the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission designated the Charlie Parker Residence a New York City Landmark.

By the way, apartments in this building hit the market every so often... they run upwards of $4,000 per month.